Analysis of Lee(TM)s Persimmons

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Analysis of Lee's "Persimmons"

Li-Young Lee's "Persimmons" shares the author's perspective on his Chinese culture after having moved to America. My initial reading revealed his disassociated feelings towards his customs and language, but a contextualized analysis of the piece showed satisfaction because of the complexity woven into the piece. By using typography, repetition, and symbolism he develops his memories into a reflection while staying relevant by including current experiences.

I took my first reading of the poem as simply an expanded memory. It begins in sixth grade and progresses to his father's becoming blind. I made the assumption from the title that persimmons would be a significant element and they were. Lee had pleasant memories of his mother's crafts and his father's art. I noticed that italics denoted speech. The first thing I detected on a second, closer reading was that not all the spoken parts were italicized and that Lee had incorporated shape into the printed poem.

Lee divides the poem into twelve sections each containing an individualized piece of his picture. When he brings the poem to the present talking of his lover he mentions teaching her Chinese. However, he doesn't completely